Herbie Kane has signed his first professional contract at Premier League club Liverpool. The midfielder, 17, has been a regular for Liverpool U18s after breaking through from the U16s. After scoring 15 goals in his first season since his move from Bristol City, the England youth international has been rewarded with a new contract.

Kane has established himself as one of Neil Critchley’s more reliable midfielders in the U18s this season, with impressive performances leading to an England U17 call up. The midfielder featured in the European Championships before travelling with Neil Dewsnip’s side for the U17 World Cup in Chile earlier this season. The former Bristol City youngster has helped Liverpool rise to second in the U18s Premier League table as well as reaching the fourth round of the FA Youth Cup.

Kane has yet to make his U21 debut for the club, but should he continue his form for Neil Critchley’s side, a role in Michael Beale’s U21s doesn’t look far away. He becomes the second U18 player this season to sign a professional contract with the club, after forward Yan Dhanda put pen-to-paper on a two-and-a-half year deal in December 2015. Kane and his U18 team-mates are next back in action on Tuesday afternoon, when Stoke City are the visitors to the Kirkby Academy.